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The internet is a minefield of scams, from mothers' secret formulas for flush abs to insidious get-rich-quick schemes to fake Louboutin shoes. And, to be honest, when I first heard of Indochino I added it to the pile. A custom suit that cost below $500, delivered within three weeks, with $75 of alterations thrown in if you needed to change it.

Well, colour me surprised that it actually worked. It's relatively fool-proof: You either measure yourself with your own tape measure or order a Tailor's Kit - a $29 series of swatches and nice tape-measures that comes with $29 worth of Indochino credit. The site guides you through the vagaries of your own body, guestimates measurements and lets you adjust to fit your own body. You save, you order, and in three weeks you get a suit. If you need to get a tailor to tighten it up, you scan in your receipts, send them to Indochino, and they'll give you up to $75 back for your adjustments.

I, personally, had to get a tuxedo made-to-measure for my wedding that they let me have to try out. I was tenuous and worrisome and considered not taking the risk and going with my other favourite tailor, Astor & Black for a tuxedo that would cost me over $1000. However, in the name of good reporting and penny-pinching, I got my poor, innocent fiancé to measure me based on the videos (which Indochino reminds me are not standard - they're body-measurements versus those of your clothes) and crossed my fingers that there were no major mistakes. 20 days from hitting order, I received the tuxedo (shipped and manufactured in China), put it on and was...pleasantly surprised.

It felt good. It fit well. A slightly baggy waist was fixed with a belt. It actually worked, and it's hard to say that without sounding like the very infomertials I abhor. It was the quality of my other favourite men's clothing e-tailer, Bonobos, but with the custom touch (for a little more money and a lot more waiting-time.) The only worrying element that remains is the manufacturing in China. However, CEO and Co-Founder Kyle Vucko, this doesn't really effect the final product:

"Most wools come from the same mills in China - it doesn't really make a difference. For example, our Vincero line of suits use the same wool as that used by Ralph Lauren for its Purple Label menswear range. You can also evaluate fabric upon a range of factors including weight, composition (wool, linen, silk, cashmere, etc.) and thread count. What enables us to offer unique pricing is our model - we work directly with our production partners in Shanghai and ship direct to the customer."

Indochino passes the discounts onto customers versus the commonplace model of relying on a nationwide salesforce to measure customers in a store, in their home or on the street, if they must. It's a good model - also used by Bonobos (though they just opened up their first brick & mortar storefront in Boston) and Warby Parker to make items approachably priced (and yet keep their margins), and one that the fashion industry seems to be cottoning onto, with companies like underwear e-tailer MeUndies jumping in to handle the more basic options.

As a business, Indochino has grown pretty steadily, with 40,000 customers in 60 countries, with revenue doubling year-over-year. They've recently upgraded the site to adapt to any device after realizing many of their customers were reading their email newsletter on their phones or tablets, and getting a sub-par experience. While nothing approaching that of a dedicated iOS or Android app, the new site does allow make quick changes to your sizes from your phone, as well as put full orders through.

Their next venture has been to deal with the pain-point of cack-handed suit-wanters who can't measure themselves properly - The Travelling Tailor. In about 15 minutes they'll measure you, prep the fabrics you'd want and help you put through an order (like Bonobos' Fit Ninjas). They'll be hitting Toronto from June 12th, with their first US destination being Seattle in July - followed by San Francisco, LA and Chicago in before finishing up in New York in November.